July 2016

Dan's Observations

Human health—the food we eat and the air we breathe

Human health is not the first topic that comes to mind when thinking about agricultural sciences. But human health is central to much that we pursue in both agriculture and science.

The College of Agricultural Sciences is a leader in some surprising areas in the study of human health, from the food we eat to the air we breathe. Recent headlines underscore that leadership. In June, Congress passed a landmark bill that would regulate thousands of toxic chemicals in everyday products, from household cleaners to clothing. Evidence to support the new bill came from research by Kim Anderson and others in OSU’s Department of Environmental and Molecular Toxicology. Also in June, the Environmental Protection Agency announced their plan to clean up the Portland Harbor Superfund site, where water and sediments are contaminated with hazardous substances including carcinogenic polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs). The Superfund Research Program at OSU is a leader in developing new technologies to assess PAHs found in many of the nation's Superfund sites and in urban and rural areas around the world. Here’s another example: following passage of the new Food Safety Modernization Act, the college has been named to lead a $1.2 million food safety center to help growers and food processors in 13 western states prevent foodborne illnesses.

 These headline-grabbing examples grow out of the college’s ongoing commitment to explore the molecular basis of human health, unravel the impact of foods we produce and consume, and identify the health hazards of the myriad chemicals to which we are exposed. Combining the biological and physical sciences, the College of Agricultural Sciences helps improve the health of individuals and ensure the protection of public health. 

Sincerely,

Dan

Daniel J. Arp
Reub Long Professor and Dean
College of Agricultural Sciences
Director
Oregon Agricultural Experiment Station

Oregon's Agricultural Progress Magazine

Human Health

Oregon's Agricultural Progress magazine is a report to taxpayers, who help fund the Oregon Agricultural Experiment Station.  In the Summer 2016 issue, we have engaging stories about research efforts that matter to our health and well being.

The latest issue is available online (read more...) and if you do your reading on a tablet, we have a mobile APP for that!  Use the search function to find back issues and topics you are interested in.

• Can you name that vegetable on the front cover?  (photo credit Stephen Ward)
• Why are pregnant women told to avoid cats' litter boxes?

Keep good food from going bad:  Food Safety all along the food chain

(By Rachel Bucci) Driving past a Chipotle restaurant last fall suggested a scene more like an Edward Hopper painting than a bustling eatery. The popular Mexican restaurant chain had shuttered dozens of its locations in Washington and Oregon following a series of E. coli, Salmonella, and norovirus outbreaks. The doors were locked, the lights were dimmed.

Fortunately, no one died in the Chipotle case. Salmonella-contaminated peanut butter killed at least nine people and sickened thousands in 2008–09, and resulted in a 28-year prison sentence for the CEO of the Peanut Corporation of America.

Last fall, OSU was selected to administer the $1.2 million USDA Western Regional Food Safety Center, one of four in the US, to provide technical assistance, training, and outreach to help small and mid-size farms, processors, and wholesalers understand and comply with the new regulations.

“FSMA has a much broader reach because now it’s going back to the production on the farm,” says Robert McGorrin, the center’s lead director and head of Oregon State University’s Food Science and Technology Department. “Is there a contamination of surface water because of cattle grazing the next farm over? Are there issues with how the crops are being exposed to different levels of contaminants in the field? It’s a much bigger net over the food supply.”  (Read more...)

Recent News

Loper starts as Associate Dean

Dr. Joyce Loper began her duties as Associate Dean in the College of Agricultural Sciences on May 2, succeeding Dr. Larry Curtis, who retired after serving for 9 years.  Joyce has had a long career with USDA-ARS as a Research Plant Pathologist and Research Leader of the Horticultural Crops Research Laboratory (HCRL) in Corvallis, Assistant Director (Acting) for the Pacific West Area, and Scientific Quality Review Officer for agency research programs nationwide. 

She has been a Professor (Courtesy) in the Department of Botany and Plant Pathology since 1997, serving as a mentor for many OSU undergraduate and graduate students.  Her research interests include genomics of plant-associated bacteria, microbial ecology, biological control of plant disease and secondary metabolism.

Congratulations to CAS's recently promoted faculty

23 individual faculty were considered for promotion. Congratulations to our recently promoted colleagues!

We are fortunate to have these talented and dedicated individuals in our College and are delighted to see their accomplishments acknowledged with these promotions. (Read more...)

Follow us on Twitter!

OSU’s College of Agricultural Sciences has an official Twitter page!

Follow us @OSUAgSci for updates on all things AgSci, including spotlights on faculty research, student stories, fun historical facts, and weekly messages straight from Dean Arp! (Read more...)

Alexander named director of EESC

Jennifer Alexander will serve as director of Extension & Experiment Station Communications (EESC,) effective July 1. Jennifer has served as interim director of EESC since March 2015.  
 
Jennifer joined Oregon State University and EESC in 2010, serving first as a publishing manager and then as interim director since March 2015. She previously worked in research communications for Pioneer Hi-Bred in Iowa and as a technical editor for Kansas State University Research and Extension. Jennifer holds a bachelor’s degree in horticulture and journalism and mass communications and a master's degree in agricultural education, both from Iowa State University. As director, Jennifer will continue to provide strategic leadership and management for EESC, a team that serves the strategic communication needs of the OSU Extension Service and Oregon Agricultural Experiment Station through educational publishing; news, public issues, and impact/accountability communications; visual design and multimedia; and innovative, effective web and educational technology efforts. EESC also provides communications advice, consultation, and training for OSU Extension and Agricultural Experiment Station faculty.

New OSU leaders appointed at eastern Oregon's ag research stations

(By Gail Wells) New leaders will come on board this month at two Oregon agricultural research facilities: the Burns and Union units of the Eastern Oregon Agricultural Research Center, or EOARC.

David Bohnert, Oregon State University animal scientist and director of EOARC’s Burns unit, will become interim director of both facilities. Bohnert, an expert in livestock nutrition, succeeds Tim DelCurto, who will leave in September to take an endowed professorship at Montana State University. Patricia Kennedy, OSU wildlife ecologist and currently professor at the Union unit, will become interim director  of the agricultural-sciences degree programs at Eastern Oregon University in La Grande, which are administered by OSU’s College of Agricultural Sciences. (Read more...) 

Crop & Soil Science researcher recognized for exemplary volunteer efforts in Nepal

Sabry G. Elias, associate professor of Seed Science & Technology in OSU’s Department of Crop and Soil Science, has received recognition for his volunteer work in Nepal. Elias was one of 125 people honored by Winrock International with its President’s Volunteer Service Award for “exemplary citizenship through volunteering.”

It commends Elias for contributing over 176 hours of service for Winrock’s Farmer-to-Farmer program, funded by the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID). The award was accompanied by a certificate, a medal, and a letter from the White House. (Read more...)

OSU Update

Sabah Randhawa leaving OSU; Committee and firm chosen to begin search for new OSU provost and executive vice president

(by David Stauth) Sabah Randhawa, OSU's provost and executive vice president will leave OSU this summer to assume the presidency of Western Washington University in August. Ron Adams, interim vice president of administration, has been appointed as the interim provost and executive vice president until the position is filled on a permanent basis.  A committee has been selected to undertake a national search for the new provost and executive vice president at Oregon State University. Randhawa has more than 30 years of service at OSU. Since 2005, he has served as the university’s chief academic officer and second-ranking administrator, providing overall leadership for Oregon State’s academic affairs, faculty and student services, information technology, research and graduate programs, international programs, OSU-Cascades, the OSU Extension Service,  Ecampus, OSU’s top-ranked online education program, and a new Division of Undergraduate Studies.  (Read more...)

The provost serves as Oregon State’s chief academic officer and second-ranking administrator, providing leadership for academic affairs, faculty and student services, information technology, graduate programs, international programs, OSU’s top-ranked online education program, the Extended Campus, and statewide public service programs such as the Agricultural Experiment Station, Forest Research Lab, and the OSU Extension Service.

New “Student Success Initiative” to lower costs, increase graduation rates

(by David Stauth) Oregon State University President Edward J. Ray today announced a new “Student Success Initiative” in his annual State of the University address in Portland, calling on the university within four years to make an OSU degree an affordable reality for every qualified Oregonian. Ray also pledged that by 2020 OSU must better serve students of diverse backgrounds and ensure that all students attending Oregon State achieve success “regardless of their economic status, color of their skin or family background.”

Ray called upon Oregon State by 2020 to raise its first-year retention rate for all students from 83.8 percent to 90 percent, and its six-year graduation rate from 63.1 percent to 70 percent for all students. Ray said the university must tackle the “near impossible” financial burdens and levels of debt that students and their families now face. The average Oregon resident undergraduate has an unmet annual need at OSU of $7,256, creating a legacy of debt and a serious obstacle to higher education. (Read more...)

Highlight:  CAS Web Team

Meet the CAS Web Team

The College of Agricultural Sciences has a strong team of web professionals who are here to support our faculty, staff and students in communicating and engaging with various audiences 24/7.  Left to right:  Gaurav Mandan is Web Manager; Sara Monk is site builder and support; Erin is content strategist and communication specialist; and Roger Leigh is the Drupal developer handling server hosting, administration and databases. You can contact the CAS Web Team at 541-737-5641 or use this web form.

What we've been up to lately

The CAS Web Team has been at work creating the foundation and support for the web presence of the entire College of Agricultural Sciences.  They provide an integrated framework for units to display information for their key audiences.  Providing support, training and guidance for the creation and maintenance of unit websites, they also have a solution for providing sites for research laboratories. A new and helpful service is providing audits and advice on information architecture for various sites within the College ecosphere.  Take a look at the resources they have posted on the web.

Students

Blossoms, bees and bubbles highlight annual Hoo Haa

(Gazette Times) The Hoo Haa, now in its 13th year — or 14th, no one is certain — is an Organic Growers Club communal gardening celebration aimed at getting people back to their agricultural roots by planting 10,000 onions at the club’s 2-acre farm east of Corvallis. This year, while the music, fun and games kept many entertained throughout the evening, it was the act of getting down and dirty that inspired dozens of club members and volunteers, who spent nearly all of their time at this year’s Hoo Haa in the garden. (Read more...) 

OSU MANRRS Conference brief sneak peek

The Oregon State University MANRRS Chapter was well-represented at the 2016 National MANRRS Conference with 4 graduate students, 14 undergraduate students and 4 Jr. MANRRS high school students in attendance.  Here is your sneak peek at the contest results. We had a long trip home and arrived in PDX around midnight Sunday evening.  In the meantime, hope you enjoy a few highlights. (Read more...)

Global Experiences

Gifts support life-changing experiences overseas

“I will never be the same!” 

That’s how OSU student Jocelyn Stokes sums up her year-long internship in Malaysia studying sun bears: the world’s smallest and the least researched bear. It was an extraordinary hands-on learning experience made possible in part by the Global Experience Fund in the College of Agricultural Sciences. Thanks to growing support from the Oregon State community, more and more students throughout the university likewise are jumping at the chance to participate in research, service, and educational programs around the world.

The Global Experience Fund was established in 2012 by Hiram Larew ’77, ’82, who recently retired as director of the Center for International Programs in the National Institute of Food and Agriculture, an agency within the U.S. Department of Agriculture. In this role, and as a policy adviser at U.S. Agency for International Development, he spent years traveling in developing countries, guiding programs in Afghanistan, Armenia, Congo, Haiti, Iraq, Nicaragua, South Africa, and more.  Recently Hiram made a new gift commitment to create an endowment for the Global Experience Fund, assuring that support will be available perpetually for students and faculty in the College of Agricultural Sciences. His gift was matched with $20,000 from the ER Jackman Enhancement Fund and $5,000 from the college’s Dean’s Fund for Excellence.  

It’s been a great pleasure for Hiram Larew to hear back from students like Jocelyn. “They’ll often say, ‘I went over assuming I knew what I’d be doing, that I knew the problem and what the answer would be. But when I got there, all bets were off. Nothing was as I expected,’” he notes. “Then they say, ‘But as a result, I’m a better person. I’m smarter. I found that, yes, I can offer insights, and I also gained insights.’ That’s what I really hope this fund will allow.” (Read more...)

Global Experiences Fund

Where-wolf There-wolf by Juliana Masseloux

Upon returning to Nairobi, I have the pleasure to attend the Kenya Wildlife Service’s Carnivore Conference. On the morning of October 28th, Mandela drives Elena, Sarah, and I across town to the Kenya Wildlife Service Headquarters in Nairobi. We join a group of about 50 other attendees – mixed Kenyan and international – who work for diverse conservation organizations focusing on carnivores. The crowd includes KWS rangers and officers, Tanzanian representatives, national and international students conducting research in Kenya, and members/coordinators of various conservation organizations including Ewaso Lions, Action for Cheetahs, and Lion Guardians. The first day is primarily talks and updates from KWS and various carnivore conservation programs and is concluded by discussing and coming up with a theme for the next conference (land use and conservation) and re-emphasizing the need for more research on disease and hyenas, which are a primary conflict species but not particularly well studied. (Read more...)

Antarctic Study Abroad by Danita Dahl

Many of us stayed up to see the promised first ice of the journey, and it was worth the wait.  The first glimpses of frozen land and ice was not only a great feeling of being found within the expanse of ocean, but also the realization that we were on the cusp of our achievement of a goal to get to the remotest place on Earth.  The next morning we awoke to the grandiose Lemaire Channel and all stood on the bow and watched as the captain navigated the narrow waters.  Between the ice patches I saw the profoundly deep blue water reflecting the snow-capped cliffs and I could feel the truly untouched beauty and danger of the Antarctic.. (Read more...)

Leadership Academy

New Program Coordinator for the Leadership Academy

Haley Clement will be joining the Leadership Academy as the coordinator for the new year, while pursuing her PhD in Science and Math Education, with the goal of teaching Agricultural Education at the university level. Haley joins the program from California, where she taught agriculture for four years at Liberty Ranch High School. She has extensive experience with team leadership, and supporting leadership growth and development in students. Haley completed her Bachelor’s Degree in 2010 at California State University, Chico in Agricultural Science and Education and then followed with Master’s in Agricultural Education in 2014. After getting married in the summer of 2015, Haley and her husband, Nick Traini, spent the 2015/2016 school year teaching agriculture in Ghana with AgriCorps (http://agricorps.org/) and the Kumasi Institute of Tropical Agriculture (http://kitaghana.org/ ) . Through this experience, Haley expanded her expertise in leadership and agricultural development as well as gained valuable knowledge in cross cultural communication. We are excited to have Haley join our team and look forward to working with her in the upcoming years.

Incoming Student Cohort of Fellows for the Leadership Academy

The 2016/2017 Class VI Leadership Academy Fellows were announced in May.

• Taylor Boquist, Horticulture
• Alyssa Cain, BioResource Research
• Alicia Collier, Food Science and Technology
• Maggie Collins, Agricultural Sciences
• Olivia Diaz, Natural Resources
• Alec Eastman, BioResource Research
• Madison Esposito, BioResource Research
• Kate Faber, Fisheries and Wildlife Sciences
• Hanna Hagler, Fisheries and Wildlife Sciences
• Bailey Jenks, Agricultural Sciences
• Joanna Kubes, Agricultural Business Management
• Ericka Lepschat, Agricultural Sciences
• Rachel Lertora, Fisheries and Wildlife Sciences
• Abby Lohman, Agricultural Sciences
• Ameyalli Manon-Ferguson, Fisheries and Wildlife Sciences
• Megan Marchand, Agricultural Sciences
• Elizabeth Puttman, BioResource Research
• Ashley Reese, BioResource Research
• Benjamin Rietmann, Environmental Economics and Policy
• Gabriel Sandoval, Fisheries and Wildlife Sciences
• Eduardo Santa Cruz, Animal Sciences
• Emily Schechtman, Agricultural Sciences
• McKenzie Searles, Agricultural Business Management
• Luke Taylor, Natural Resources
• Nick Teubel, Agricultural Business Management
• Lauren Thalhofer, Agricultural Business Management
• Chase Unger, Agricultural Business Management
• Cassandra Wagner, Agricultural Business Management
• Julia Wilson, Food Science and Technology

The outgoing 2015/2016 Leadership Academy Fellows

• Danica Berry
• Heather Brown
• Luke Coomer
• Chris Derrickson
• Maya Giddings
• Elizabeth Hagerman
• Akira Ishii
• Kaitlyn Kornberg
• Lauren LaGrande
• Emma Miller
• Gabrielle Redhead
• Anne Marie Richards
• Jessica Roland
• Amanda Santos
• Nicholas Schillereff
• Taylin Sparks
• Teague Teece
• Vaishnavi Trivedi
• Ryan Van Houten. (Read more...)

New Advisory Board Members for the Leadership Academy

As the Leadership Academy continues to change and adapt as it enters its fifth year in the College of Agricultural Sciences and College of Forestry, the Advisory Board continues to flex to meet the needs of the program. This year we added a new member, Dr. Carl Jones, a plant geneticist and research manager for Monsanto, in place of past member Connie Armentrout who also worked for Monsanto. Carl is a former organic farmer from Oregon and worked as a Research Associate for Seeds of Change and earned his MS in Horticulture (Plant Breeding with Minor in Food Science) from Oregon State University in 1999 and his PhD in Genetics and Plant Breeding from UC Davis in 2005. Carl is able to share his personal experience and science background with our Advisory Board. As an OSU alum he connects well with the students and shares his current passion for leadership development.  We are thankful to have his contribution to the board.

Another new member on the Advisory Board is Miriam Hawk. Miriam is also an OSU alumnus, who excelled in her education while a student, taking advantage of opportunities such as internships and being involved on campus while earning her BS in Viticulture and Enology.  Miriam started her career in the wine industry as an intern for E. & J. Gallo Winery and quickly excelled through the ranks of Gallo Sales Company, progressing from Sales Representative to District Manager to Area Manager. This year she is taking on a new role within Gallo as the Fine Wine Manager for the greater San Diego region. Miriam’s enthusiasm for leadership is contagious with the students and as a guest speaker this past year, she was a highlight for the group. Miriam is also a past Leadership Academy graduate and we look forward to her future involvement with the program. (Read more...)

New Fields

Agraland Industry Tour Recap

The second week of Spring Term, approximately 35 students and 2 advisors loaded onto a tour bus to explore agriculture in the Portland area. Also known as the “Agraland Tour,” students were able to tour a diverse set of tour stops including farms, a brewery, and a farmers market.

Friday morning, the tour group departed Corvallis and headed to Donald, Oregon to tour GK Machine Inc. The next stop for the group was Pacific Seafood, where they toured headquarters and a distribution center and were provided lunch by Northwest Farm Credit Services.  From there, the tour continued to the Food Innovation Center (FIC), an Agricultural Experiment Center located in Portland, Oregon. Students learned about the research conducted at the center and even got to do a food tasting of samples of Masala Pop’s handmade Indian-spiced popcorn! Following a tour of Charlie’s Produce, the group ended the day by touring the Clackamas Land Lab, learning about the operation, and having dinner provided by the North Clackamas FFA Chapter. (Read more...)

Ag Days Recap: Oregon Without Borders

The Agricultural Executive Council hosted their largest event of the year, Ag Days, during the first week of May, Monday through Friday.

A Global Opportunities Poster Presentation was held Monday afternoon in Strand Agriculture Hall. Students presented about their experiences abroad at the poster session. The activities then continued with two workshops – one featuring Bill Moar, an entomology scientist from Monsanto, speaking about international agriculture and competitive markets and the second being a study abroad panel featuring Oregon State students. (Read more...)

Research

Coal-tar based sealcoats on driveways, parking lots far more toxic than suspected

The pavement sealcoat products used widely around the nation on thousands of asphalt driveways and parking lots are significantly more toxic and mutagenic than previously suspected, according to a new paper published this week by researchers from Oregon State University. Of particular concern are the sealcoat products based on use of coal tar emulsions, experts say. Studies done with zebrafish – an animal model that closely resembles human reaction to toxic chemicals – showed developmental toxicity to embryos. Sealcoats are products often sprayed or brushed on asphalt pavements to improve their appearance and extend their lifespan.

“Our study is consistent with previous findings made by the USGS,” said Staci Simonich, a professor with appointments in OSU’s departments of Environmental and Molecular Toxicology and Chemistry. “But we were able to study a much wider number of PAH compounds than they did. As a result, we found even higher levels of toxicity in coal-tar based sealcoats than has previously been suspected.”  (Read more...)

Crafting the future of Oregon's expanding beer economy

(Special to the Oregonian, by Kyleah Puyear, St. Helens High School and Annie Vong, Parkrose High School) Shaun Townsend stands beside Oregon State University’s experimental hop field with a bag of bright green hops in each hand. He reaches into one, pulls out a few dried cones and crushes them gently between his palms, dipping his nose into his hands to take in the pine and citrus scent. Townsend, a hop breeder at the university, works with other scientists to develop new varieties, helping provide brewers with new taste profiles. (Read more...)

Rory McDonnell, New OSU slug expert will help Oregon farmers combat the slimy pests

Oregon farmers battling slugs in their fields will soon have a new ally in Rory McDonnell, a slug and snail expert who joins Oregon State University’s College of Agricultural Sciences this summer.

McDonnell comes from a research position at the University of California at Riverside, where he studies novel ways to control the troublesome mollusks. His position is new, one of several made possible by a $14 million legislative investment in research and Extension work based at OSU. (Read more...)

Art About Agriculture 2016

Art About Ag 2016: Agriculture of the American Landscape

Multimedia Connections

Facebook Pages

College of Agricultural Sciences 

Agricultural Education and Agricultural Sciences

Biological and Ecological Engineering

Fisheries and Wildlife 

Food Science and Technology

Horticulture

OSU Extension

Reaching Out

Agriculture in the Classroom Literacy Project

Thanks to generous support from the College of Agricultural Sciences, college students have been filling Corvallis-area elementary schools with Oregon Agriculture in the Classroom’s Annual Literacy Project.

The project, in its ninth year, is designed to help elementary school students improve both their reading and agricultural literacy. Each year a new agriculturally-themed book is chosen and a lesson is developed that reinforces the message of the book. Then hundreds of enthusiastic, trained volunteers bring in-class presentations to classrooms throughout Oregon. This year 8 students in the College of Agricultural Sciences volunteered in local Corvallis-area schools reading the book and interacting with the students. (Read more...)

Alumni & Friends

CAS Alumni reception held in DC March 29th

From Stella Coakley, Emeritus Associate Dean:  On March 29, 2016, the College of Agricultural Sciences (CAS) held its second reception for friends and alumni who live in the Washington, D.C. (WDC) area.  Wade Foster, ’09 Environmental Economics and Policy, hosted our event at The Fertilizer Institute Capitol View Penthouse. The weather cooperated sufficiently to have a chance again for outdoor pictures; unfortunately, two photos are needed to compensate for the lack of my photography skill and the failure of those being photographed to cooperate at the same moment---my apologies for the sun in the eyes and the shadows on the faces! Congratulations are due to Wade Foster who will be going to law school at the University of Virginia this fall. We have appreciated his hospitality for our last two receptions and wish him the very best that law school will bring. (Read more...)

Top Cherry-Producing Family Invests in Research

It takes more than the deep, fertile soils of the Columbia Gorge to make Wasco County the #1 producer of sweet cherries in Oregon. It takes plenty of sun and not too much rain – the perfect balance found in the rain shadow of Mt. Hood. It takes farming experience – people like Bob and Barbara Bailey, whose Orchard View Farms has been in the family for four generations.

Yet the Baileys know all of this still isn’t enough. For up-to-date information on cherry production issues, diseases, and pests, they know they can rely on OSU’s Mid-Columbia Agricultural Research and Extension Center (MCAREC) in Hood River. The center specializes in research important to cherry and pear growers: research at the heart of the region’s productivity and global reputation for quality.

To ensure that the center always has faculty devoted to tree fruit production, the Baileys are creating an endowment to support their work. (Read more...)

Hiram Larew publishes chapbook

Hiram Larew, (MS Botany 1977 and Ph.D. Entomology 1981), has published his third collection of poetry, a chapbook titled Utmost. 

It was recently published by I. Giraffe Press.  Nominated for two Pushcart Prizes, his work has appeared in several journals and books, and has received The Louisiana Literature poetry prize. A review of the collection appeared in the Washington Independent Review of Books and it was named Best Chapbook for National Poetry Month.

In Memoriam

James Oldfield

(Legacy.com) James Edmund Oldfield, 94, of Salem, formerly of Corvallis, died April 3, 2016.

Jim was born and raised near Victoria, British Columbia, the third son of Clarence and Doris Oldfield. He attended grade schools and high school in Saanich municipality, and went on to the Victoria College and the University of British Columbia. During World War II, he served in the Westminster Regiment, Fifth Canadian Armoured Division, in Italy and Northwest Europe. On return to Canada he resumed graduate studies at U.B.C., proceeding to Oregon State University, where he earned the doctoral degree and joined the faculty of the Department of Animal Sciences, which he headed from 1967 to 1983. He became one of the world's leading authorities on Selenium research including his work in Animal Nutrition which led to the cure of White Muscle Disease in cattle. He was awarded the Distinguished Professor at OSU in 1969 and received the prestigious Klaus Swartz award for Trace Mineral work in 1998. Jim thoroughly enjoyed his life's work, and after retirement continued his association with the department, colleagues and staff.

Jim married the love of his life, Mildred Atkinson in 1942. She passed away in 2007. He is survived by their 5 children, Nancy (Brian) McLaren, Kathy (Steve) Sansone, David (Merilee) Oldfield, Jane (Pat) Oldfield and Richard (Karen) Oldfield, 10 wonderful grandchildren, and 6 great-grandchildren. (Read more...)

John "Jack" Daniel Lattin

(Corvallis Gazette-Times) John (“Jack”) Daniel Lattin was born July 27, 1927, in Chicago, Illinois, to Percy Daniel and Myrtle Race Lattin. He served in the U.S. Army 1945 to 1947, and later graduated from Iowa State University (B.S.), University of Kansas (M.S.) and the University of California Berkeley (Ph.D.).  He died on January 18, 2016.

He married his wife of 63 years, JoAnne Gilmore, in 1953 in Salem. They lived in Berkeley until 1955, then moved to Corvallis where he joined the faculty of entomology at Oregon State University.

During his 40-year career at OSU, he was curator of the Entomology Museum (1961-66), directed the Science Honors Program (1963-65), and established the University Honors Program (1966). He was later assistant dean of the College of Science (1967-73), director of the Systematic Entomology Laboratory (1974-96), acting chair of the Department of Entomology (1976-78), and director of the Biology Degree Program (1976-78). He was also associate dean of the College of Science (1982-87) and Rice Professor of Systematic Entomology (1996). (Read more...) See also:  Bulletin of the Oregon Entomological Society

William Stephen

(Oregon Live) Dr. William P. Stephen, Emeritus Professor of Entomology at Oregon State University died peacefully in his home in Corvallis, Oregon on June 17, 2016 at the age of 89. Dr. Stephen dedicated his career to research and publications, specializing in the study of leaf cutting and native bumble bees. He shared his expertise through graduate instruction and internationally through the agricultural branch of the United Nations. Born in Winnipeg, Manitoba Canada to Stephen and Amalia Procuronoff, he was a devoted husband to Dorris Jo Stephen until her death in 1996. Bill is survived by his children Dana Stephen Schaefer of Portland, Oregon, Jan Marie Boukather of Mission Viejo, California, Mary Beth Puton of Paris, France and W. Thaddeus Stephen of Willows, California along with ten beloved grandchildren and two great-grandchildren. His intellect, love, vitality, humor, and kindness will be greatly missed.